Lone Warrior
by Graceful Rage
Summary: Archer was never one for teaming up. Even if asked to fight five Napdragons at once, he'd do it solo. Then, his whole view changes when he meets another lone wolf, Sora. Rated T to be safe. My first story.
1. The Wolf and the Lion

**Okay, here we go. Hi guys! I'm very proud to present the very first chapter of my very first fanfiction! Being a first, I'm bound to have made a few spelling errors** **and some misplaced commas. Also, some parts may seem a bit rushed as well. If so, be sure to leave it in a review.**

~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^ Chapter 1: The Wolf and the Lion ^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

Despite his view being obstructed by pine branches, despite the fact he put up black sheets over the branches and even going so far as to put a blindfold on his face, the sun still rose in the sky. The light filtered through the cracks in the boy's defense, awakening him.

 _Why do the nights seem to last only seconds?_ Refusing to succumb to the light, the boy turned over, his armor clanked in annoyance. A sigh escaped his lips as he lay face down, the sun now out of sight.

The victory was short lived before the sun, the mocking ball of flame, rose higher in the sky, beckoning him to his feet.

 _Alright! Alright! I'm getting up!_ The boy sat up, the blanket sliding off his chest. He wanted to glare at the sun, give it the evil eye, but he knew it was useless. The sun was an object, not a person, meaning that the attempt would have no effect. Besides, staring at the sun would cause him to go blind, and then where would he be in his Life!

The adolescent sighed, then gathered up the sheets and pillows in his arms. He crouched down and gathered the bed items under the branch of a pine tree.

He turned away from the now hidden items and pulled back the branches, emerging from the pine onto the cobblestone street. His day started the same way, the trip to the plaza. The plaza was always an important part of his Life, for all Lives.

Taking another step into the open street, the boy glanced around warily, then directed his attention back to the pine trees. The sheets and blankets he used were remarkably hidden from view. The boy smiled slightly. Hiding items had always been a specialty.

"Hey!"

The adolescent hung his head and groaned. As good as he was at hiding objects, hiding himself? Not so much...

Reluctantly, the boy turned to the voice. "What do you-"

He never finished his question, but concluding it would've been unnecessary. The one who called kept yelling, but it took the boy a few minutes to realize it wasn't directed to him.

He watched as another boy ran past him, yelling the occasional "Hey!" down the streets. He watched the shouter run down the street, where he caught sight of his armor and red clothing. It was the sight of the claymore at his back that made the boy sigh in relief.

 _Just a mercenary._ He thought as his sapphire eyes dropped toward the longsword in the scabbard. _Close, but not quite._

With a turn of his cape, the paladin started back toward the plaza.

* * *

Epic. To many, the word was used to describe something extreme or unforgettable. To him, it was known as his name.

Epic slept on a wooden bed, the blankets tossed carelessly aside in a bird's nest. A roof lay over the young one's head, preventing the sun from being the cause of his wake.

"Hey! Epic!"

Immediately, Epic woke at the sound of his friend's voice. Two mahogany eyes pried open as the mercenary took in the surroundings of the upstairs room.

"C'mon! I know you're awake!"

The chestnut haired boy leaped off the bed, eagerly. Two hands lifted the glass window which allowed morning light to pour through. Below him, he saw a mercenary, Jude, waving up to him. Jude immediately caught sight of Epic.

"What are you going to do? Sleep in all day? Come on down! The Board must have been updated!"

The Board. A wooden bulletin board located in the plaza that the citizens of Castele used to post requests. It was a very essential piece for all forms of Life.

Nodding down to Jude, Epic turned and opened the wardrobe located across the room. From there, he withdrew mercenary armor and and a claymore still sheathed. Once he dressed himself in the uniform, he directed his feet to run downstairs and out the door toward the plaza.

* * *

The East Grassy Plains, an ocean of green sweeping strands. Along that emerald surface lay dots of milky white flowers. Jutting out along the perimeter lay brown craggy mountains along Mt. Snowpeak. Along the northwest, the horizon was dense with the foliage of the Elderwood. All in all, it was a beautiful place!

But Epic knew better. As a mercenary in training, he knew the truth.

Sure, the grass was pretty, but it served as concealment to some of the most fearsome being in the area, mainly bandit groups. Not only that, the flowers housed worker bees and the craggy mountains were home to sandzards. Then when night fell, the canines came out. Stalking throughout the fields with their wicked faces where they hoped to snag the unsuspecting wanderer for-

" _AUUUUUGGH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!"_

Then there were the carrottys, carrots that had mutated into vicious monsters. They mostly spent their time soaking up the sun or rolling in mud. In short, they were harmless, unless provoked. Unfortunately, Jude was the type to swing his sword at anything that moved. Might explain why there was a carroty hanging onto Jude's arm as he spun in circles.

"Don't just stand there! _Help!_ ". The coward shouted. His partner just rolled their eyes.

"Just hit it with the claymore!" Epic said. Jude stopped spinning and started shaking his arm up and down, attempting to shake the carrotty off. Instead, the vegetable held on, its face forming a smile. The image made Epic easily think of it shouting, "WHEEEEEEEEE!"

Once he visualized it, it was all over. Epic fell down and laughed wildly.

"It's not funny!" Jude exclaimed, still shaking the carroty.

The chestnut mercenary still laughed maniacally, beating the ground with his fists.

" _Stop!_ " The mercenary yelled. " _Get. It. OFF!"_

Epic forced himself to stop laughing. "Fine," he said as he got back up. The boy wrapped his fingers around the claymore, then he started toward Jude.

Jude's eyes widened in terror as he saw the bronze sword. "AIIIIEEEEEEEE!" he shrieked. The coward immediately turned tail and started running. The carroty fell off by the sudden movement. Seizing his chance, Epic swung the claymore, causing the carroty to fly across the plains.

The mercenary turned to his companion, who was huddled up in a bush with his hands covering his head.

"It's gone now, you can get up." he said.

Jude poked his head out of the bush and looked both ways nervously. After the coast was clear, he stepped out of the foliage. The navy haired boy brushed off his armor, then fist pumped.

"Y-yeah! Although if I didn't weaken it, you wouldn't have stood a chance!" He exclaimed.

The chestnut rolled his eyes. _You didn't do anything...idiot._ He mentally criticized.

Shaking his head in annoyance, Epic turned toward his friend. "Well consider that carroty a warm-up," he said. "You do remember what we're really after."

Jude looked down, eyes locked on the earth. Then, his eyes widened as he looked at Epic.

"Y-Y-You don't mean...can't w-we let the paladins handle them?" He stammered.

Epic shook his head. "They already have a lot to handle. Besides, I want to become an Apprentice ASAP."

The boy sheathed his claymore, then started down the hill. "C'mon," he called as Jude started down the hill after him. Pretty soon, the navy mercenary was walking right beside his companion.

"Hey," he whispered to Epic. "What's ASAP?"

The chestnut shrugged. "Don't know. It just sounded cool."

* * *

 _Focus._ That was all on the boy's mind. With a sword in his left hand and a shield covering his right, the paladin took a peak at his soon-to-be adversaries. Two bandits and a leader, the lesser folk wielding daggers and the tyrant with a gigantic hammer.

The boy shook his head. With such flashy outfits they stood out among the grass easily, ruining their stealth. What was stealth though compared to strength and deadly weapons? Most would cower at such a sight, even beginner mercs.

The boy wasn't one to cower. Instead, he held his head high and positioned his sword perfectly. He inhaled, exhaled, then charged toward them.

The bandit to the left was the first to notice the armor clad boy. The boy saw the bandit draw his dagger. _He's too close to the leader, I'll take care of him later._ Immediately, the paladin shifted to the right.

He lowered his sheild as he made a vertical swing at the other bandit, hitting him perfectly. He was about to make another assault when he noticed a shadow looming over him. White blurred on green grass as the boy narrowly avoided the hammer, but was scraped by one of the bandit's weapons.

Now a distance away, he regained his defenses and took to appraisal. _And now the leaders noticed me. That's just great, now I'll have to be extra careful._ Sapphire eyes met the yellow slits in the bandit's hoods. Said eyes narrowed in intense focus.

 _Take out the bandits first. It'll be better if they don't swarm me as I attack the leader._ His planning was cut as a shock wave erupted from the ground. The paladin quickly put up his shield to deflect the blow.

 _That leader will be a problem while attacking its minions. I'll have to withdraw my shield so it won't slow me down._ Withdrawing the bronze guard to his back, the boy turned to his blade, and charged the two bandits.

Swinging the blade horizontally, both bandits were dealt a critical blow and had a similar attack from another swing. The paladin sidestepped before the hammer was brought down once again.

 _Thank goodness blunt weapons are slow._ He remarked. He noted his distance from the tyrant and how close the bandits were to him. He smiled at the favorable positioning, swung, and positioned the blade behind his back.

 _Concentrate..._ His focus was on his sword, which was powered as he prepared to strike. His eyes flared as he released his blade on the hooded hooligans, delivering a powerful spin attack. One of them let out an anguished cry before falling to the ground. The remaining bandit turned to face his fallen partner but met the same fate as the boy delivered another blow.

The boy looked up at the bandit leader who was dumbfounded by the defeat of his men.

"Not so mighty now!" The fledgling yelled as he took his shield and charged forward.

He felt his feet rush toward the towering figure, the wind blowing back his blond hair. He saw the shadow of the hammer loom, but knew the attempt was useless. He would dodge, maybe even counterattack.

 _The minions were his downfall. The way to accomplishment isn't to be a social lion._ He thought, avoiding the colossal hammer. Now on the being's side, the boy raised his blade.

"My name is Arch, and I am a lone wolf!"

* * *

 **Have to admit, for a first chapter, that wasn't bad. It was a little long though even if I cut some stuff from the rough draft. Anyway, be sure to leave a Fav/Follow if your the least bit interested and make sure to review.**

 **Arse: If you review, we'll give you 10000000000 digital cookies! :D**

 **That's... a lot of sugar...**


	2. Lighting the Forge

**It took awhile but I finally got the chapter up. I was busy working on a different fanfiction so please forgive me if some parts seem a little off. You also might notice I changed the main character's name. I honestly did not know what I was thinking when making the original name. I was just putting random syllables in my head.**

 **Arch: I like to lick butter socks! :D**

 **Epic: What's wrong with him?**

 **Oh, yeah. Because I no one reviewed the first chapter, he ate the 100000000 digital cookies so he's a little sugarhigh. ^^**

~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~ Chapter 2: Lighting the Forge ~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

The sword rose upward, hitting the bandit leader expertly. A shadow descended upon the paladin. Quickly, he jumped back as the hammer came crashing down and charged once more.

 _My name is Archer Igneous Walker. I am a fourteen years old and am a fledgling paladin._

Arch moved in for the attack, slashing at the being's waist. The red clad leader kept thrusting his hammer down, trying to hit the armored soldier. However, the handle was far too long, making him overshoot.

 _I never wanted to have this Life, but I had to. I had to become a paladin._

Arch was hit by a shockwave from the hammer's impact with the ground. The boy was sent flying backwards and was sprawled out on the ground. The bandit leader charged toward the boy.

Arch, however just smiled pushed off the ground. Ah, he could just imagine it if the other paladins were here with him right now. He could imagine the sword wielders pushing each other out of the way to get to him, to push him out of the way or attack the creature. All for him.

 _I am a lone wolf, not one of those...social lions. I've never really been compatible with others anyway._

Arch sidestepped just as the hammer hit the earth. Waves erupted from the hammer's epicenter, causing Arch to spin around and put up his shield. He shuddered slightly as he felt some of the energy shake his nerves. Even with his shield, he still wasn't fully protected against enemy attacks.

 _Might be a good thing actually, considering that if I teamed up with people, they'd just get in the way._

Arch held the shield in front of him as the bandit leader sent hammer after hammer after him. I smile broke out on Arch's face. Confused by this sudden action, the bandit leader brought his hammer down.

It was a flash of white on steel as Arch threw his shield and jumped up on the hammer. Arch ran, his sword gripped in both hands as he ran up the handle. He leapt, his silouhette against the sun as he raised the bronze blade.

"With that hammer, you probably should've considered taking a different line of work. Maybe a carpenter!" He yelled, thrusting the sword down.

The bronze made its mark, making the red hooded tyrant cry out before its body started glowing. Arch pulled out his sword and jumped off the beast just as it materialized into a new shape.

Arch panted as he stared at the transfigured being, now in a boxlike state. The box was made of a sandy colored wood with crooked steels bars across one end. Inside, Arch saw two yellow slits staring out at him from the cage.

Carefully, Arch approached the cage. He knew that bountys never broke open immediately after their transformation, just only if they were attacked. Even this one was untouched, Arch still approached warily. The bountys of bandit leaders had never seemed quite as stable to him.

Bounty eyes glared at the paladin's sapphire ones and vice versa. From every bounty Arch had ever taken, those eyes always had the same emotion in them, and that emotion was hatred. He knew those eyes too well, they were the eyes that wanted him hurt, hunted, beaten down. They were eyes that wanted him to fall off cliffs, be torn apart by monsters, be washed away by ocean waves. They were eyes that wanted him to burn in-

"Hey!"

Arch stumbled forward as he felt something hit his head. "What do you think you're doing!" he yelled, holding out his sword.

He was expecting to see a gang of paladins, trying to steal his bounty. He was expecting even more bandits, attempting to free their leader from his oaken prison.

He was not expecting to see two teenage mercenarys.

One of the mercenarys was dressed in the usual garm of a fledgling. He looked average with his chestnut hair and blush until Arch saw his eyes. The eyes were colored mahogany with a bit of peach. Arch saw him tossing stones in his hand and knew that one of them had been thrown at his head.

The other mercenary stood a few feet behind the chestnut, nervousness in his eyes. This one bore navy blue hair which was covered by a basinet helmet, minus the visor. Arch looked at his clothes and realized this was the boy shouting earlier that morning.

The chestnut shifted from one foot to the other. "Excuse me Mr...um...Paladin," he started. Arch had to stifle a chuckle. Mr. Paladin? Man, this guy was hopeless.

The mercenary continued, "You just so happened to steal the bandit leader we were tracking all morning. You see, we have been requested by a paladin back in town to cash in the bounties of three bandit leaders,".

The boy dropped the stones and reached into his pocket. From it, he withdrew a pamphlet yellowed with age. Slowly, the merc turned the brittle pages until he arrived at the second to last one. At the top in faded ink was scrawled, _Requests._ The chestnut pointed to one of the listings.

Arch leaned in close to get a better look. Sure enough, under the headline read, _Cash in bounties of 3 bandit leaders._

"Well," Arch said. "Hate to burst your bubble but it seems we have the same goals." From his own pocket, the blond withdrew a pamphlet just like the boy's. The only difference however was that it was untouched and perfectly new. Arch thought he saw a hint of annoyance flash on the merc's face at the sight of the pure, white pages.

This time, Arch turned to the last page and pointed to one of the listings. This time, the role was swapped as the mercenary leaned close to read the print. He blinked once, then twice, for across the page was also written, _Cash in the bounties of 3 bandit leaders._

Same handwriting, same wording, same request.

Oh gosh...

"Ohmigosh! So sorry! I didn't know that you were also working on that request!" The chestnut bowed his head repeatedly in apology. "Name's Epic, I'm a fledgling mercenary!" He introduced. Epic grabbed the other mercenary's arm and pulled him over. "And this is Jude, also a fledgling."

Arch gave a faint nod. "Yeah, I figured you were fledglings. Well, at least you and not Jude," (Hey!). "My name is Archer, and I'm a fledgling paladin."

Both Epic and Jude gaped at the boy. "You're a FLEDGLING!" Epic exclaimed.

"Yeah,"

"And you took down a bandit leader!?"

"I guess..."

"All by _yourself?!"_

"I work alone, it's my thing."

Epic shook his head in disbelief, the helmet slightly rattling. "No, way. It's not possible." He muttered. Arch shrugged. "Well, you just saw it for yourself so you'd better believe it." he said.

Epic snapped out of disbelief and raised his head. "Say, Archer, since we have the same goals what do you say about working together? I mean with your skills and our-"

" _No."_

Epic jumped back at the response. The way Arch had said it, it was quite commanding. It was almost as if the boy had morphed into Mustang for half a second.

"No?" The chestnut gawked.

"No," Arch said, grabbing the bounty. "I'm a lone wolf, okay?" His feet shuffled through the grass as he started to walk away.

"Hey, wait! Archer!" Epic yelled, starting after him. Arch turned toward the oncoming mercenary. "What!?" He said.

Epic immediately stopped running toward the armored adolescent. The chestnut fingered the handle of his claymore nervously. The last thing he needed was a short tempered paladin.

"I just thought we could come up with some sort of compromise," he said.

Arch groaned. "I already told you, I work alone," he grunted.

"You don't have to team up with us!" Epic exclaimed. "We could just, take turns."

"That still sounds like teaming,".

"No, wait! I meant that me and Jude could defeat a bandit leader and you could defeat the next one, making three bounties for all of us."

Arch shrugged. "I don't know..."

"We'll split the money 50/50 and you can have anything that the clerks find on them. Deal?"

Arch sighed. He despised this kind of company. Epic wouldn't take things seriously and Jude was... well, he seemed like a coward. He could never be seen with these two! Then again, money was money, and technically they wouldn't be teaming up with him.

"Well, what the heck? I'll do it," Arch said. "Just make sure to stay out of the way and we'll be fine. Okay?"

Epic broke into a grateful smile. "Okay!" He shouted. "Jude, C'mon!"

Arch shook his head as he saw the two run off. _Prancing across a field of flowers like the people they are._ He thought.

* * *

"I'm pretty glad we managed to make an agreement!" Epic cheered. He turned toward his companion. "What did you think of Archer?"

"He scares me..."

"Jude, everything scares you."

"Oh yeah!"

Epic stopped, looking around the field. "Stay quiet. Those bandits could be anywhere." he said, crouching down to the earth.

"Epic," Jude squeaked.

"Yeah?" Epic asked, turning toward him. That was when he saw it. The red clothed giant rose over them, a hammer in hand.

"Where did he come from?" Epic shouted, unsheathing the claymore. "You ready Jude! Jude? Jude!" But Jude had already run off. Epic could still see the dust he had left behind. "Oh my freaking...not again!" He complained.

The boy sighed as he turned toward the tyrant. _Guess its time to play the lone wolf._ He thought as he charged forward.

* * *

Epic stood at the door of the guild office, covered in bruises and dinks. He limped toward Jude, who was sitting at a table awaiting his arrival.

"Wow, you look pretty beat-up," he said. Wrong answer. Epic sped up to the boy and grabbed him by the scruff of his clothing.

"I got smacked by someone with a giant hammer," Epic growled. "WHAT DO YOU EXPECT!?"

"Geez, I was only concerned," Jude said, wiggling out of he clenched hands. "Did you see Archer out there?"

Epic shook his head. "No, but he should be here soon, the sun's going down." He replied. "Might as well go to the artisan district, my claymore could use some repairs."

Though the claymore was only bronze, it was one of Epic's most treasured items. Sure, it was like every other tool that provided the nesseccities in one's Life but to Epic, this claymore wasn't just a tool. This claymore was one of his best creations. The blade was designed to be sharp, but sturdy as well. The handle was made for the best grip possible, making even the least dexterous people handle it with ease. No doubt, the blade was top quality, being able to rival its iron counterparts. Epic was glad to have been a blacksmith as his previous Life.

"Might as well make a new blade and shield for Archer," Epic said, putting the two handed sword in the scabbard.

"New equipment? Epic, why do you want to help that Archer guy?" Jude asked.

Epic turned toward the merc, then shrugged. "Don't know. Probably because I think he could be a good friend."

* * *

Arch eventually returned, the two bounties trailing behind as he slightly limped into the guild office. Immediately he saw the two mercenarys waiting for him.

The boy panted as he slung the bag he was carrying onto the floor. "Hey guys, I've got the bounties," he said, giving a reluctant wave.

"What's up with your leg?" Epic asked, pointing to it.

"Huh? Oh yeah! The bandit leader sort of crushed it a bit," Arch said. "Hey, don't worry! I've had worse injuries," he said when he saw the merc's faces.

Epic nodded in understanding. "Okay, what's in the bag?" he asked.

"Animal hides," Arch replied. "I also had a request where I had to kill a bunch of red wolves. That's why I'm late. Y'know, because red wolves appear late at night."

Epic raised an eyebrow. The way he had said it was so nonchalant, as if it was normal to walk out in the middle of the night and hunt carnivores.

"You mean you were waiting for the sun to set to go hunting?"

"Pretty much."

"Then, what were you doing until then?" Epic asked.

 _Oh, nothing._ Arch thought. _I was just sitting in a tree thinking about how stupid it was to team up with others. Always getting in the way, messing up your plans. Getting hurt. Ugh! Why is it that just because you're being friendly to someone means that they should tag along with you every single minute of the day. Following you to the fields, to dinner, even in your private matters. I like people, it's just that some can be annoying! Like you two!_

"I was in a tree eating apples," Arch said. "What were you doing?"

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Epic turned and bent down in his chair. "Here we go!" He announced as he pulled two objects from beneath the table. Arch gaped at the two items. The two items were a shield and a sword, seemingly nothing special, but when you took a closer look, you could see they weren't your average weaponry.

The two items were handcrafted to perfection, to top quality. Arch shook his head in disbelief. _How could've he obtained top quality items so quickly. You'd have to know a blacksmith to-_

He stopped as he looked at Epic. Those hands, they had made these tools. How? He was a mercenary, not a blacksmith. Unless you could change Lives. Could someone do that? He had never known such acts were allowed!

"Well Archer, what do you think?" Epic asked, eager for an answer.

Arch looked up at the two, waiting for feedback.

"You can have all the bounty money, and any items they have on hand as payment," Arch said. He watched the shocked expressions on their faces as he exchanged the weapons. The boy slung the bag of animal hides over his shoulder and turned back toward the duo.

"And call me Arch, not Archer, okay?" he said before walking out the door.

* * *

 **Surprisingly this chapter took only a couple hours to type. Hopefully I can get the next one up early the following week. Be sure to leave a fav/follow if you're interested in paladins, cowards or people saying random stuff.**

 **Arch: Purple is my favorite type of cheese!**

 **Epic: Ohmigosh! When is this sugar gonna wear off?!**

 ***Arch grabs Epic and starts shaking him***

 **Arch: Shut up! I'm a pikachu, man!**

 **Review for more sugarhigh Arch!**


	3. An Apple a Day

**Finally! Got this chapter up!**

 **Archer: Where the heck have you been, its been over three weeks!**

 **Me: Okay, here we go. The reason it took me so long to write this was because:**

 **a.) I had writer's/motivation block**

 **b.) I was caught up in completing two pokemon games on the VBA**

 **c.) Your sugar rush was very annoying and I couldn't stand working with that going on.**

 **Archer: Okay, Disclaimer: TechLeopard27 doesn't own Fantasy Life. She only owns me and her other OCs.**

 **~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^Chapter 3: An Apple a Day** **...~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^**

"Archer Igneous Walker, you are now officially an Apprentice paladin!"

Applause erupted all around him. Paladins put their hands together, congratulating him on his success. Never before had anyone had such a hardworking paladin in their ranks. Never before had anyone seen someone so skilled. Never before has someone risen to Apprentice status within a week. Never before did someone look so promising!

Not another sound was heard except for the clapping and cheers. Arch should've been proud of being a true paladin prodigy. He should've been grateful to have such skill and promising success in his Life. He should've felt happy for such an achievement. Most of the paladins in the crowd thought that thoughts of praise were on his mind.

 _Idiot. I am such an idiot._

That was what was really on his mind.

Though he stood on the podium, taking his newly upgraded license, Arch felt like he was in a deep pit with everyone looking down at him. He imagined them pointing and laughing as he struggled but failed to scale the pit's walls. He imagined them teasing him for his many acts of idiocy.

When he saw those two mercenaries the other day. They were completely oblivious to how dangerous the world was, how Life wasn't just a fantasy. One was cowardly, would probably not last in the mercenary Life. The other was an optimist, thinking that he was like some sort of protagonist of a story, thinking that he was a hero.

They were below his level of seriousness, inferior compared to him, a complete embarrassment.

And he had decided to help them.

 _Idiot._

Then on that same day, the optimist mercenary had handed him a sword and shield. Both were weapons forged to perfection, revealing that this chestnut haired boy had indeed been a blacksmith at one point, that he switched Lives. Arch hadn't known that one could switch occupations. He had always thought that when you chose a Life, _poof_ , that was it. Good luck trying to survive!

The fact he was ignorant of the Life system nagged at him constantly.

 _Idiot._

He still had those forged weapons. He knew that passing up valuable equipment was a pretty stupid act, even if it was provided by one of lower tier. He had paid for the equipment by giving up his hard earned bounties, money and all. It wasn't the fact that he had bruised a leg for nothing that made him feel stupid. It was the fact that he needed the money badly and he gave it up so willingly.

 _Idiot._

Arch shut out the congrats of the paladins. He just pocketed the license and trudged through the crowd, ignoring everything entirely. So what if he made Apprentice in a week? So what if he had pronounced skill? It wouldn't make up for all the idiot acts he made.

Back pressed against the wall of the paladin hold. Arch stood in the audience, watching others step up onto the podium. He heard people getting nominated just like him and people being introduced into the paladin Life.

 _Walk away kid. Walk away, NOW!_ Arch mentally warned as a young boy stepped off the podium. Arch sighed. _You're in for a tough ride, kid._ He thought and once again focused on his idiocy.

Then Mustang said something, something that made his hair stand on end.

"Roslyn, come on up!"

 _Oh crap, not her!_ Arch cowered, trying to shield his face. The female paladin stepped onto the podium, her pale hair tied into a ponytail. Like Arch, she was also nominated to Apprentice, and received similar applause.

The whole time, Arch sank to the floor. _No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no..._ He droned on and on.

If there was one thing he hated among all his stupid acts, it was the one related to Roslyn. The one that made him ashamed of being an apprentice, one that made him ashamed of even being a paladin.

 _Idiot, idiot, idiot..._

* * *

"Get back!" Arch screamed, swinging his longsword wildly. The monster ducked, the blade nicked the top of its head. Slowly, very slowly, the monster started forward.

Arch stumbled backwards, heart pumping and sweat beading down his face. His back met the cold surface on a rock. The boy looked desperately at his enemy, which was slowly inching forward. There was nowhere to run.

 _Why did I get myself in this situation!_ Arch mentally screamed, the sword hilt wet with nervous sweat. "I said get back!" he yelled, fear in his eyes.

"What are you doing?"

Arch turned his head to face the voice. Next to him stood Roslyn, a paladin in-training just like him. Arch narrowed his eyes and gripped the sword tightly.

"Fighting monsters. What else would it look like?" he replied, making the sarcasm in his voice clear.

Roslyn shrugged. "I dunno. Looks more like you were cowering in fear."

Arch's face turned red. The teen lowered the blade and spun to face Roslyn. "N-No I'm not!" he spit out. Roslyn just nodded, unconvinced.

"If you weren't scared, then why were you screaming your head off?" she interrogated.

"So what if I was! I bet anyone would do the same if they had to face one of _these!_ " Arch motioned toward the oncoming monster.

Roslyn bent down, peering at the creature. "Your telling me people would freak out if they came face-to-face with a caterpillo?" she asked.

Arch's face turned red again. "Maaaaaaybe," he said shyly.

Roslyn turned toward the beet red paladin. "Well in that case, you better get rid of it. Don't want anyone seeing it and getting a heart attack!" she chuckled at her own joke.

"Fine!" Arch groaned, giving in. Both hands once again gripped the hilt of the blade, preparing for the finishing blow.

 _It's okay._ Arch reassured. _Its just a caterpillo. You've faced bandit hordes fearlessly before. A little bug is nothing!_

Feet spread into a fighting position, Arch took to appraisal in his enemy. The caterpillo was sniffing around, crawling on stubby, brown feet and decorated in green skin with orange spots. The creature had two leaves sprouting from the top of its head. It looked up at Arch with two eyes, black pupils in white sockets.

One thing was for certain. This was definitely not a "little bug".

"AUUUUGH!" Arch screamed, bringing the sword through its face. He heard the cry of the creature, and Roslyn's too. The caterpillo fell down, green ooze seeping from its face.

Arch panted, then calmed down and sheathed his sword. "That's the last one!" he said. He took out the pamphlet and crossed out an assignment. Face beamed as he turned toward Roslyn.

"All Fledgling challenges complete!" he boasted. "Thank God that's over. I sure had enough caterpillos for one day!"

Roslyn stared at Arch intently. "You do realize that was the tip of the iceberg, right? I heard we still have to exterminate other forms of caterpillo. Cave caterpillo, lava caterpillo..."

The smile on the boy's face fell. _More caterpillos?_ he thought. His face sank.

"Starry caterpillo, and I think there's a- hey, what's wrong with you?"

Arch had started shuddering, those blue eyes that usually shone were dull.

"Arch, you okay? I've seen you shrug off stories of dragons and titans as if they were nothing but now, just talking about caterpillos seems to be giving you butterflies."

"Don't say that word!" Arch screamed. Roslyn stopped, looking at him strangely.

"What word? Caterpillos?" she asked.

"No, I mean, yes! I mean...both! Don't say 'caterpillos' and 'butterflies'!" Arch stammered.

Roslyn was taken aback. "Why the heck don't you want me to say butterflies! They're just bugs..." Everything clicked together. A sly smile crept across Roslyn's face.

"Arch, do you have a fear of bugs?" she asked.

Silence, dead silence. Arch stood there nervously shifting from foot to foot. Though he avoided eye contact with Roslyn, she could still see his face and saw it had turned a beet red.

"So what..." he muttered, still avoiding her eyes. Roslyn stood there her arms crossed.

"Well," she said. "Like I mentioned earlier, we have to face a lot more bugs in upcoming assignments. Plus, a fear of bugs seems a little silly for a paladin like you." She smiled at the last remark.

Arch glared at her. "It's not funny! If you had to go through the trauma I did when I was young, you would also fear them." He exclaimed.

"By 'childhood trauma', do you mean that you had to walk into an attic full of spiders?" Roslyn stifled a small giggle.

Arch covered his ears, his face scrunched in embarrassment. "Shut up!" he yelled. His feet carried him across the plains back toward the safety of town. Arch turned back to see Roslyn. She was standing there, looking at him as he ran. He quickly turned away and continued his panicked sprint.

He had let his fear slip. Him, Archer, the one who could single-handedly take down bandits without so much as a scratch. The one who ventured out at night to prevent wolves from infiltrating Castele. Archer, the one who would pull a Jude at a small caterpillar. Fortunately, he kept his fear secret.

However, it wasn't a secret anymore.

Idiot. Pure idiot.

* * *

Arch had heard from many that reaching Apprentice was just the tip of the iceberg, and that from there on out, fulfilling the challenges would be increasingly difficult. He had shrugged it off at the time, but now he knew exactly what they were talking about.

Though he had reached Apprentice within a week, he only had six challenges to complete at the time. This time, he had more than twice the amount, thirteen to be exact.

 _Okay, combine that with the fact that you still need to use your time to collect dosh for food and an actual place to live. Now take that and add to the time spent focusing on paladin duties and requests. Now add to the fact that you are still adjusting to the paladin Life and might need to use most of your extra time for training._ Arch calculated all this in his head, his eyes looking at the paper the entire time. His face sank as he realized the truth.

"That would take about an average of five months, give or take," he muttered. The teen shook his head in dismay, a small sigh escaped from his lips. Why did he have to be a paladin? Why didn't he have the courage to choose something more peaceful, like the angler or alchemist Life? Why was it that he was in the one Life that lapped up his free time?

"It'll all change once you reach Adept," Arch reassured. He started to get up from his chair, ready to head out to the gates when his eyes caught the paper. One look at the challenges was all it took to drain his courage and remind him of the five months he had to endure. Arch groaned as he banged his head on the table.

 _Idiot,_ he thought to himself. _I was such an idiot to have chosen an overbooked Life..._

"Hey, Archer."

The boy reluctantly lifted his head. Across the wooden table stood Roslyn who was pulling up a seat. _Oh crap!_ Arch mentally shouted. He scrambled into a proper sitting position, trying to avoid eye contact. "Oh! Hi Rose!" He said. Arch sat up in the chair and made an attentive cough.

"So, why are you here?" he asked nervously. _You idiot!_ He scolded himself. _You know what she's here for. Shes gonna make fun of you because of your fear of insects!_ Arch nervously tapped his fingers on the hard wood, bracing himself for her jeering.

"Do you mind if I take a seat? I was wondering if we could discuss how to tackle our new set of challenges," she said.

Arch breathed a sigh of relief. The challenges, of course that was all she wanted to talk about!

"Sure," he said relieved. However, the second Roslyn sat down, the boy felt like hitting himself in the head.

 _Idiot! Why did you offer her of all people a seat?!_ He scolded once again.

While Arch sat there regretting everything, Roslyn took out a piece of paper. The paper had a small _Apprentice Challenges_ written at the top. Beneath that was a list of different assignments.

"So," she started, running a finger down the paper. "I was looking at these, and it seems like we have quite the handful."

 _No duh!_ Arch felt like saying. Thankfully, he kept his mouth shut and let Roslyn keep talking.

Roslyn glanced at one of the paladins stationed at the southern gate, then turned back toward Arch.

"Apprentice is the first rank where paladins have to go on official duties such as escorts or being sent to guard specific locations. This really doesn't give us much spare time." She said. "Not only that, these challenges are assigned to three different locations, not just one, meaning that we need to make multiple trips."

"Not only that, but we still have to take requests from the Board." Arch added.

Roslyn nodded in agreement. "We should make an organization plan, considering how overbooked we are." She grabbed the paper, then started reading off of it. "I was thinking that after our tutoring tomorrow, we could probably head off into the plains and-"

"I already thought of a plan," Arch interrupted. The paladin stood up from his chair, then stooped down and slung a bag over his shoulder. "I'm going out right now to complete some challenges."

The boy started toward the southern gates, expecting Roslyn to chase after him. It surprised him when he didn't hear her feet pounding on the cobblestone roads. Curious, he turned his head toward her direction. Roslyn was standing up in her chair, eyeing Arch suspiciously.

"Arch, it you're thinking about going to Mt. Snowpeak, then forget it," she said. Arch flung the bag from his shoulder and stared at Roslyn. "Why?" he asked.

Roslyn sighed. "It'll take about two hours to hike up Mt. Snowpeak, a few more hours to complete some assignments, and another hour to hike back down. It'll be dark by then," she explained.

Arch turned away from the paladin. "Who says I'll be going to Mt. Snowpeak? There's still the West Grassy Plains and Elderwood," he replied.

Roslyn shook her head. "The West Grassy Plains are massive. It could take forever just to find a single grass serpent. As for the Elderwood, there will be predators everywhere," she argued.

Arch sighed. "Guess Elderwood's my best bet then." He said, once again slinging the bag over his shoulder. Without another word, the armor clad paladin raced for the southern gates.

"Arch, wait!" Roslyn screamed, starting forward. She was too late. The eager paladin had already disappeared across the drawbridge.

* * *

He didn't know what to expect when he walked into the Elderwood. When looking at it from the plains, he couldn't tell how crowded it was. Now that he was actually inside the forest, he could see how truly dense it was. Trees rose all over the place, blocking his view of the horizon. On the ground, bushes, weeds, and mushrooms grew, swallowing up any sign of the cold earth entirely.

Everywhere he looked, Arch only saw a mix of greens, blues, and browns. "It'll be impossible for me to find anything in here," he muttered aloud. At least it would be impossible for any predators to find him either. Maybe.

 _Scrunch!_

Arch swiveled toward his right. "Who's there!" he shouted, then immediately clapped a hand over his mouth. If that had been his target, then it probably would've been startled by the sound of his voice and fled. Then again, if it had been some sort of predator stalking him, then it would have fled, knowing that Arch had acknowledged its presence. However, if it was just his imagination, then everyone in the forest might have heard his voice.

 _Idiot!_ He sighed, though he released his grip on the longsword.

 _Scrunch!_

Arch's ears perked up. _Okay, either this creature is really dumb or someone's messing with me._ He thought. Slowly, the paladin crept over to his right. He cringed as he heard leaves rustle slightly as he passed through a set of bushes. _I really hope this thing doesn't hear me._ He sighed.

Then he saw it. He only had a small glimpse of the animal, but it was enough to confirm its presence. The boy crouched into the safety of the bushes and slowly started forward. Within ten feet of his possible quarry, Arch stopped and examined the animal.

The animal was crouched in a small clearing. It turned, giving Arch a clear view of the creature. The animal was indeed the one he was looking for; an Applejack ape.

The Applejack had fur that resembled the color of an apple, only a it was little brighter. A yellow scarf of thick fur was wrapped around its shoulder blades and traveled toward its chest. Two leaves sprouted from the Applejack's head, adding to the applelike appearance.

 _That thing is huge!_ Arch gaped at the animal in awe. Though it was only on four feet, it was at least a foot taller than Arch. Arch knew it was nothing to sneeze about, considering that he had heard stories of Fanged apes who stood twice as tall as their Elderwood counterparts. It wasn't cold, but he shuddered at the thought.

 _Scrunch!_ The ape lowered its head as it bit into a colorful fruit. Arch was somehow intrigued by the fruit in question. Slowly, he stuck out his head for a better look. The ape lifted its head, its yellow mane rustling in the breeze, and sniffed the air. Worried that the applejack would catch his scent, Arch sank back into the safety of the bushes.

Eventually, the applejack lost interest and resumed eating the fruit. It shifted in its spot, positioning its back toward Arch. The paladin smiled at the favorable position.

Both hands gripped the sword hilt as he prepared to charge. He waited until the ape lowered its head to take a bite of fruit before he sprinted out of the bushes toward it. He must have made a lot of noise for the ape turned abruptly at him. Arch raised the longsword high over his head, then swung at the exposed face. The blade made a direct hit. Arch winced as he felt his sword cut into the ape's skin.

The mighty ape stumbled backwards, the fruit fell from its paw as its hand reached up toward its injured face. Howling, the applejack charged toward Arch on three legs. The boy put up his shield as the ape swung a rust colored arm at him. Though the shield blocked the blow, the impact sent the shield flying and knocked Arch off his feet.

"Ugh.." he moaned. Instinctively, a hand reached up toward his chest. A sigh of relief followed when he realized his ribs were still intact. The relief didn't last long. He heard the ape hollering at him. He looked up to see the beast, both of its fists were raised over him, ready to crush him.

Arch groped for his sword, a feeling of power coursed through him as he felt the cold metal of the hilt. He looked up fearlessly at the applejack, who was starting to bring its fists down.

Quickly, Arch closed his eyes, then thrust the sword upward at the advancing animal.

A long animal wail rang throughout the forest as the blade made contact. Arch longed to cover his ears, to escape the pain this creature was feeling. The wails slowly silenced as the furry animal collapsed on top of him. A warm liquid dripped down his hands, causing him to cringe.

Ages seemed to pass before he finally got the courage to open his eyes. The Applejack was lying on the ground motionless. There was no steady rise and fall of its chest, nor was there any life in its eyes.

Dead. Stone dead.

Arch stared at the lifeless body. "My first kill," he muttered gravely. Though he often fought bandits, he never killed any. The bandits were more useful alive, considering how their arrests brought in dosh. As for caterpillos, he never really thought of them as real kills. After all, they were just bugs, and people killed bugs all the time.

This time, he had made his first kill. The thing he killed felt like one of the closest things to man. He hated the feeling of guilt coursing through its veins.

 _It wouldn't be right to just leave it there._ Arch thought. He knelt beside the body. _I could probably get a good price for its pelt._ The boy laughed at the image of him carrying an applejack pelt into Castele. It seemed ridiculous because after all, he was a paladin, not a hunter. It did seem plausible to sell the hide, considering that it seemed wrong to kill an animal and not use it in some way.

He grabbed the fur in both hands and carried it over toward the bushes. He lifted the branches and thrust the applejack under it. _Just need to find two more, then I can transfer them over to my hideout in the Grassy Plains._ he thought. Just two more applejacks, and he wouldn't have to come back to this forest ever again. It was there that Arch knew his comfort zone was in the plains, not this dense forest.

 _I don't want to lose this spot._ He thought. The paladin stood up and scanned the clearing for a distinguishing feature that he could remember. He stopped when his eyes lowered to the fruit the ape had dropped.

He had never gotten the chance to analyze it. Arch stooped down and picked up the fruit. The bite marks the ape had made prevented him from identifying what type of fruit it was, but he figured it resembled some sort of rainbow colored apple.

"Where did it get this?" Arch wondered aloud. He looked up at the trees hoping to find some of the same fruit within their leaves.

Just then, Arch heard an object whiz through the air and strike through the fruit he was holding. He abruptly turned toward his left. The fruit he had been holding was stuck to the side of a tree, with a narrow, wooden stick impaled into it. The end of the stick was decorated with feathers. Arch knew that if he pulled the object out of the bark, he would find the end of the object sharpened to a point.

Someone had shot an arrow through his fruit and sent it into the trunk of a tree.

Hunters were in the area.

Arch turned toward his right, the direction the arrow came from, and stopped short. Standing in the bushes was a girl, dressed the green clothing of a hunter with her bow raised. Beside her, a husky was crouched and making low growling sounds.

"Took you long enough to notice," she said. Her voice was stern and commanding. "I'm surprised that nothing has mauled you with the way you were stomping around!"

* * *

 **If you have played Fantasy Life before, then you probably notice that Roslyn is much more serious than she is in the game. I decided to make her like that for better plot development.**

 **Archer: Why did you give me a fear of bugs?!**

 **Me: Because its funny.**

 **Archer: But still...**

 **Me: In other news, I got my first review! *throws confetti***

 **Archer: I think you're overreacting a bit. It was a guest review after all.**

 **Me: Still, he/she said some good things about this fanfiction and really hopes that I continue it. I will be continuing and improving this story because of that review.**

 **Make sure to leave a fav/follow if you enjoyed this and want more and leave a review to share your thoughts.**


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